"Five by Five" was a P-47D-30-RA flown by Colonel Joe Laughlin, C.O. of the 362nd Fighter Group, 9th Air Force from August 1944 to the end of the war.
It is depicted as it would have appeared in 1945.
(Submitted for for the P-47D livery competition)
The roughmets have been adjusted and updated to give a better metal effect.
The cowling access catches have been reduced to the correct amount: twelve rather than the 26(!) depicted on the template, and are now correctly orientated to the normal map.
The front cowling panel line has also been moved rearwards to its correct location.
The cowling rivets have been correctly aligned to the NM and the superflous rivets (a lot of them) erased.
(There are far too many rivets modelled and drawn on the cowling area, about two thirds should be removed.)
The Swastika victory symbols are deliberately reversed as they were on the actual aircraft. Why did he have them painted this way you ask? Don't know.
The aircraft serial number in the data block has the last three digits unevenly applied. Again this has been done
deliberately as they were applied this way on Laughlins' aircraft.
Gun surrounds are now painted yellow as I realised I had missed them on examining a good quality period photo.
I have also drawn all the art including the "Dumbo" noseart,
